This invention relates generally to a computer-based method and system for supply chain management, and more particularly, this invention relates to a method and system for gathering and disseminating quality performance and audit activity data in an extended environment.
With the advent of the Internet and related technologies, complex networking systems have evolved that enable distant trading partners operating disparate computer systems to interact with one another. The Internet provides a ubiquitous message routing architecture that supports reliable inter-business connectivity around the world, based on common communication protocols and common standards for system interoperability. Further, the Internet and related intranet and extranet technologies offer a relatively low cost of entry, making them practical for use by large and small businesses alike. Web-based security issues have been minimized through the use of intranets that connect a business' internal processes to the applications and data they need and extranets that connect external processes to the applications and data they need. Firewalls or security devices are added to protect against unauthorized access to the internal network and to isolate unauthorized Internet access from the extranet. With this new technology in place, existing trading barriers between trading partners can be removed, allowing for a synchronized flow of information.
A recent trend in electronics manufacturing involves contracting out some or all of the manufacturing of a company's products to third party manufacturers which then build these products according to specification. This arrangement, known as outsourcing, results where the original manufacturer (called an Original Equipment Manufacturer, or OEM) buys assemblies in bulk from third-party contract manufacturers and then customizes them for a particular application. It then markets and sells the customized equipment under its own name. By outsourcing the manufacturing and assembly of these goods, established OEMs are able to focus on other business areas such as new product development and customer relationship management. Additionally, as product designs and components are becoming increasingly complex and frequently updated, a contract manufacturer with specialized skills may be better equipped to accommodate the changing technology. By outsourcing to meet peak demands, an OEM may be able to avoid having to build new facilities and/or hire new people.
An OEM who is outsourcing the manufacturing of its products needs to be able to collaborate with its contract manufacturers and suppliers before, during, and after the manufacturing cycle in order to achieve maximum efficiency of the production process. One area of collaboration is supplier auditing and reporting. Technology shifts are causing new technical suppliers to rise in an ever increasing worldwide space. With this rise in suppliers, comes the need for new quality control measures including auditing processes. Before integrating a supplier technology into an OEM's product, a supplier is often subjected to a rigorous audit to ensure that correct technical processes are followed and to ensure technical capability. Supplier audit management must be able to handle the audit process where the OEM has offices located around the world and buys from suppliers equally spread out. Traditional methods of qualifying suppliers and performing auditing procedures often result in redundant or unnecessary audits where inefficient, incomplete, or outdated records provide incorrect information. This is compounded by the fact that multiple procurement divisions of an OEM may not always know what other divisions are doing due to inadequate communications, employee turnover, and/or geographic separation. Further, old auditing methods that involved tracking down a particular auditor who possessed the requisite skills necessary to perform the audit was tedious and time consuming and often involved scheduling the auditor to travel excessive distances to the audit sites. Finally, old audit methods provided inconsistent results where audit reports took on different formats depending upon the division requesting the audit, resulting in non-standardized audit reports and unsatisfactory results. The present invention seeks to eliminate or reduce the above inefficiencies by providing a centralized storage system and process for creating, editing and storing auditing schedules, reports, and reference materials via a collaborative, web-enabled workgroup application.